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Review by Susan Granger
3½ stars out of 4
What does it take to be a good psychologist? How can you get
people to confide their fantasies, dreams, and frustrations in order
to alleviate the pain of the human condition? Writer/director Lawrence
Kasdan believes that listening, really listening is the most important
skill - and that's the premise for his intelligent, amusing new
comedy. Loren Dean ("Billy Bathgate") stars as Dr. Mumford, a young
psychologist who opens a practice in a small, picturesque town,
coincidentally named Mumford, and discovers his unorthodox form of
therapy has amazing, unexpected results with an odd assortment of
quirky locals. There's a young divorcee suffering from Chronic Fatigue
Syndrome (Hope Davis), a pulp-fiction obsessed pharmacist (Pruitt
Taylor Vince), a frustrated housewife (Mary McDonnell) who's become
addicted to mail-order shopping, her workaholic husband (Ted Danson),
a fashion-preoccupied teen (Zooey Deschanel), Mumford's outspoken
landlady (Alfre Woodard) who runs the local cafe, and a lonely
billionaire (Jason Lee), the monarch of modems, who zips around on a
skateboard. While they respond to his empathy and frankness, no one
realizes that mysterious, unconventional Dr. Mumford has the biggest
secret of all - except maybe a suspicious attorney (Martin Short) and
the two other therapists in town (David Paymer, Jane Adams). Like
"The Big Chill," "The Accidental Tourist," and "Grand Canyon," this is
an excellent ensemble effort, which is a credit to Kasden's talent for
casting. On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, "Mumford" is a
fantastical, intriguing 8, proving that love comes in many disguises.
Copyright © 2000 Susan Granger
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out of 4
